The present invention relates to a method and system of increasing traffic in a telecommunications network and, more particularly, to a method and system of notifying users of an opportunity to complete a previously incomplete communications connection.
Traditionally, telephone subscriptions were sold based upon a fixed fee which was not dependent upon the number of calls placed or the length of time a connection was established. With the introduction of service between calling zones (i.e. long distance, intercity, and international) billing by time increments for an established connection became common practice. Mobile or cellular telephone service providers have adopted a similar billing approach.
With the number of conventional telephones in many major markets near saturation, and the number of cellular phones subscribers in many markets not far behind, telecommunications service providers are looking for new ways to increase revenues without raising rates for service. Because billing is typically only for calls in which a connection is established, increasing the number of completed calls is the best way to generate increased revenue.
Answering machines and voice-mail offer one means of completing a call when a called subscriber is unavailable, but many callers are reticent to use these systems, so that some calls remain uncompleted.
Caller ID provides a passive solution which does not require participation by the calling party. However, it requires installation of special hardware at each recipient subscriber location. Many subscribers choose not to install such hardware because of the cost. Further, calls which originate with one service provider and are directed to a subscriber of a second service provider are sometimes received without caller ID information. If intermediate service providers are used in routing the call (e.g. in establishing an international connection), the likelihood that this will occur increases.
Because of the relatively high cost of mobile telephone service (e.g. satellite or cellular phone service), the greatest incentive for increasing traffic in a telecommunications network exists if the calling party, or the called party, or both are mobile phone subscribers.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,930,701 to Skog teaches methods for transmitting a caller identification number to a called party mobile station within a mobile telecommunications network. However, the teachings of Skog require use of GSM technology elements (e.g. MSC or MAP). This means that those teachings may not be applied to non-GSM telecommunications networks.
Further, Skog specifically teaches the use of an HLR which is normally a rate-limiting component in a cellular telecommunications network. Thus, implementation of the teachings of Skog must necessarily result in a backlog of caller identification numbers at the HLR with the size of the backlog being proportional to the number of incomplete calls.
Further, the teachings of Skog are limited to cases in which calls are missed because a subscriber handset is unreachable. Handling of calls which are incomplete for other reasons is not taught by Skog. Thus calls which are incomplete because the subscriber is busy in a data session or the subscriber didn't answer or allowed voice mail to answer but received no message in the mailbox do not benefit from the teachings of Skog.
There is thus a widely recognized need for, and it would be highly advantageous to have, a method and system of increasing traffic in a telecommunications network devoid of the above limitations.